Coupling-centering device



R. E.'POWEFS.

COUPLING CENTERNG DEVICE.

Avfucnxou mw uic. 3. 192:1.

PartentedvJuly 4, 1922.

msnm' E. POWERS, or MONTREAL, comme,4 cmsnn coUrLINa-cnmnnme nnvzcn To all whom it may concern; l,

'Be it known that I` Ronniri E. Powuizs, a citizen o'f the UnitedStates of America., and resident of the city of: Monti-euh in theI Province ofQuebec and Doininion o f Cai-nuda, have invented certain new `sind useful Improvements in Coupling-Gentering De- .I vices, of which the following is ia.l full, clear,

' tive y return n coiiplerl from a. Il

the rollers and carriage boing on such vtruck .formed ruck, plate. These .slope upwardly from a centra and exact description ofthe invention.

This inventionrelates to improvements in coupler centerindevices, and the, object of the invention is provide a deviceof great sim licity and durability` which will posi position of lateral displacement to a predetermined po.- sition.

A further oii'ect is 'iv iroride centerin f v .l l is device enzi-blin the. use of a' tie-bolt to strengthen thet iront member through `'which the cou l'er opert Y A sti l further object is lto provide ii centering device which'will overcome' the disadvantages .inherentto roller centering; devices. Y

Up to the presenthtime a rn-:it variety of centering devices have been rodiiccd, u cousiderable number of which y spend for their operation on one or more4 rollers interposed between u. coupler carriogd'ffand ii specially `truck plates l position und centering deviceoperates by 4reason ol forced upwiird liite wilzli'the lateral mo\-'e- J ment. As the liiteriil m'ovemen't is not very great und as the parts are subject to corro# sion ond accumulations of dirt it is necessary that the slope of the truck be foirlysluirp in order to ensure mofcment of the rollers, cnrringe undV coupler to the lowest oiit. Such 'the e sharply inclined truck ways o1 ci' consider- -alile resistance tothe coup ers. v

According to the present invention, the

coupler rests on a carriage which is in turn supported by ii pair of rockers each having supporting points on oppositesides of the vertical centre. As ii. roiiplcr is moved luierally, tliecarriage swings on the roi-kers ut the same time ruisingfhe rurriuge und coupler. The only friction is' at lthe en ds of the rockers and is much less than the friction of rollers.

In the drawings which illustrate the iu- Ventipn:-

Bpeclcatlon of Letters lPotent. Application lied-December 3. 1920. Serin! No.

.zit their casting ly the same construction Fig. 1 is n n end elevation of the device.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view. 'Fig'. 3 Yis o, sectional, view on the line 34-3,

Patented July 4, 1922. 1

Fi re 2.

lciferring more particularly to tliedrawings; 11 designates theend sill of e cer, to whihps nittecliedw a throat plate 12 which in this invention is in the form *of* an inverted U-shapedcasting .delining espace 13, in

4which the coupler shank'ld may move horiiiontelly and vertically. Apoclret member l5 is mounted between the arms of the throat casting 12 and forms normally n. support for thecouplershank. Thispocketinemberis held in place byubolt 16 which pusses through it and through the arms of the casting 12 thus connectin the arms together and supporting them so t onction with the top member ,of the .y pressure or. pounding of the coupler against them. The bolt 16 is disposed midway between the fronteii'dback walls 17 at they will not be readily broken of the pocket member, us clearly shown in Figure 3, hut the. weight of the centering device and-coupler is sup orted by the lugs ll* of the throat plate independently o the holt 16. The bottom of the'pocket member is provided with a plurality of ves 18 extending parallel with the coup these grooves bein prefer-abi four iri'nuinbei` us shown in bgigure 2. he' bottom of the pocket is also provided with an .outlet 19 for the escape of water und cinders which muv become lodged therein.

n the upper carriage :3G is provided he'ving u standing fhinges 21 at its ends which-em tween them the coupler shank. The lower surface of this carriage is provided with av pliiralitv of grooves 22 similar to the ves v1S undprefcriibly disposed vertically dbove img parallel with tliie sume.

ncor more ro ers 23 nre disposed', tween the bottom the carriage to rnc-ker has two bottom spaced of the {'verticol axis indicated by the section liuc 3- 3. The top of the rocker is of exiictas the bottom, linviiig'foiir points or lugs M to support the carriage. Preferably the top :ind bottom of the rocher have the sume dimensions in over',` respect so that it can be inverted at pnrt of the pocket member ai.

er shank,

eqiiidistunt on opposite sides will. These points or lugs 24 bear in the grooves 18V and 22 of the pocket and carringe res ectiiely. For convenience and to provide or the passage of the boltl, the rockers are preferably each formed of two similardplates 25 connected intermediate the top an bottom by a. cross member 26, so that. each rocker when viewed edgeu'ise is in the form of a letter H,Aas clearly shown in Fi ure 3.

'he rockers normally stand on both points of support so that their axes are vertically disposed, as shown in full lines Figure 2Q In this position the carriage issupported equally o'n the top points of each rocker and the load being ap lied squarely rover the. ints of su rt at tie bottoni; the

p0 gpo rocker lies no V ten enc-y `to swing about either point of support. As `a. car travels The upward movement of the carrie over a curve theeoupleis are drawn laterally out of theaxialline of the car oo that `the sbanlrs travel to one sidel or the other ofthe opening 13 of thev throat plate.'` As a coupler moves laterally it, draws the sup porting carriage 20 wit it and tlie'cairinge,

if in engagement 'with each rocker, swingsthe rocker about two of its points of sup- 'port'on this .bottom of? the ket. Owing to` the engaging points 24 o the rocker being on opposite sides of the vertical axis at both top and bottom, it is obvious that the swing of the rockerabout either ioint of l supportatfthe bottom will raise t e point of support on the opposite side of the axis at the top,`a.s clearly shown in broken lines Figure 2. The load line is thus immediately shifted out of parallelism with tbe vertical axis and is represented byfa diagonal of the rocker. 'It will be also seen that the application ot coupler weight at the top of the rocker at one end of the load line is considerablyto one side ofthe 'pointed support it the bottom of the rocker and at the olpositeend of the loud line so that the teni en c is forv the rocker to return to noi-mal position of-support on both bottom points 24. As long as the load line remains on one side f'the vertical-from the point of support the rocker will return-to normal. The width of the opening 13 isisucli that the rockers cannot -be swung sufficiently to bring their load lines to the verticale above the points Vof support, so that the mckorstend always to resume their original posiion.

suppoi-ting points of the rockers raises e carringe and' therefore the cou ler thereon, so that the whole weight o f e Acoupler earriage and rockers is effective to iietum the rockers toi-theinnormal position in which they swing the coupler between the sides of the opening 13 and in the central axis 'of the car.

The rockers impart a. much greater elevating movement to the carriage and the cui'. y ycentre of the poc et member not only coupler than is possible by the use of rollers "on inclined `tracks without making the inclination of the tracks so t as to oler considerable resistance tot e lateral movemembers, so that the would be compel ed to slide in place of ro r as intended. In the present construction these conditions cannot occur as the rockers'- do not move bodily but merely swing about their points of support.' 'As will be noted"4 in Figure 2, the rockers'occupy the whole;

bottom of the pocket -so4 thattliey cnnnot jump .out of the ves and' assume .iinproper positions.

the depending end flanges 2. Ther-eis no l n the saine way the clar` ringe lcii.nnotjiimp tlie rockets and assume arr improper position iis it is retained by' room for the rockers to fall over laterally es the end walls of. tbe ckt prevent this while the ,front and bac walls revent any upsetting lin the longitudinali The brid 28 provided' in 4the strengthens the pocket member `.by spanning the drainage outlet 19 butV also .either of the rockers from fouling t ie other rocker and interfering with the'free operation thereof. The rockeis being exactly the same, top and bottom, it is impossible for them to be nut in incorrectly. When once in lace both are retained by the bolt 16 wliic thereof.

While the invention as thus far shown and described concerns only rockers which'V bear at their ends in recesses, it wilLbe underpnsses betiveenthe plates 254 `stood that they are in eect links and that the same result would be obtained if the rockers .were formed with notches 'or irection of revente grooves to receive ribs or pins carried by the f pocket member and carriage.'l In other words, the invention is not limited to the precise shape of the rocker illustrated, as n number 'of modifications may be iliade therein without de artin of the invention. t wil he seen that the same result can be obtained if the rockers from the spirit.

are definitely pivoted to either the poclret or the carriage. ,In such an arran ment the rockers might be termed links. t isto be understood that the term Frocker as-used in the following claims is nere and includes an element dispose in and per orming the functions described.

While the invention has been illustrated with two rockers it will be understood that a greater or lesser number of rockers may be umd.. i

Having thus described my invention, what I claim isg- 1. A cou ler centering device comprising a Ushape throat, a. coupler support ooniso" v nected between the larms of the throat, a.

lIl

vplei' support having a carriage, each of sai rovi ed with grooves in its "2| coupler' supporting carriage, rockers sup- -pgrting the carriage on ythe support, andV a lt connecting the arms of the throat and holding the support and the rockers. 2. In a coupler centering device, a U- shaped throat member.V a coupler support mounted between the arms thereof, a. coupler`centering device mounted on said' su throat and holding the centering device "againstldislodgment,

8. .In a coupler centering device; a coud k pocket therl'lein, a cilirrui 1n sai poe et e aging t e coup er ange rockers in said niet supporting the rockers comprising a pair of spaced plates and a bridge connect mg s'aid plates intermediate their ends.

4. In a coupler centering device, a pocket member forming a coupler support and provided with grooves in its bottom, a coupler carria mounted in said pocket and also iottom,`a rocker isped between the ket bottom' and coupler Hottom comprising u. pair of spaced plates each bearing in two gmoves of the ria pocket and in two grooves of the carriage, and a. bridge connecting said plates.

5. A coupler centering device comprising a throan member presenting spaced arms` a pocket member forming a coupler support and provided with aligned bolt openings,u boltpassing through said arms and tliri'iugli the4 openings in said pocket member, u cou# pler carria mounte in the pocket member and 4a foc er interposed between said caran provided with a. passage aligning with Q theopenings in the pocket member and receivi the bolt therethrough.-

6. n a coupler centering device` a meinber forming a. coupler support, a coupler and the bottom of the pocket member` carriage disposed above the su 4rt and a rocker disposed between the Spier support. and carriage presenting spaced supporting'points at its upper end in rolling contact with said carriage on opposite sides of the longitudinal center of the rocker and similar-supporting points at its lower end in rolling-contact with the coupler su port, and projections from the support and v Ween the s a ints of support in contact therewith' an' providing fulcrums for the rocker. A .Y A

7. In a coupler .centering device, a rocker for interposition between `thecou ler supp port and carriage comprising a y having spaced supporting' points` rojeting longitudinally beyond ealai enc o posite sides of the ongitudinal center of t e body, the supporting points at one end 'of the'body being aligned longitudinally withthe supporting points at the .opposite enc 8. ThecoinbiniitionV with ii rocker according ,to claim 8 of a. coupler carriage grmived for nteritting rolling contact with the up# per end of the `rocker und n coupler snprt groiwed for iiitvrfittiig rolling rontnotwtli the lower vnd of the rocker.

9. A coupl' centering device, compris ing a couplerrnrriage, u support therefor-` tlie. opposing surfaces of the support and carriage l thereof and on.

cmpport; and a bolt connecting the arms of tiieiage respectil, fitting 'into the space beheilig grmwed, :ind a roveinsihloA rocker Iinterposed between said viiiriiigo nud v`support und provided at its ends'with projections eugugeuhle vin said groove, thiI projet-.tions ut ewvh end of the rocker, being adapted ffor engagement either with the grmives of the support or of the carriage.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand;

nonnnr iwiwnns. 

